Gift-Fics that Found their Place
by Sunny Lighter
Summary: A collection of gift-fics for Kay Hau based on her various Ninjago works. This Time: Koko always feared when her son would start asking questions she couldn't answer.
1. My Own Minions

**This is a gift fic for my awesome beta reader, Kay Hau. It takes place in her _My Dad is Bad but still Family! _fic and is set any time after Chapter 29. Major thanks to her for helping so much with my own fic.**

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**My Own Minions**

There was something odd going on today. Lord Garmadon couldn't put any of his twenty fingers on it, but there was.

It was a weekend, so he had allowed Luh-Loyd to have another sleepover at the volcano.

Still, there was something different with Luh-Loyd and his minions this time around.

But _what?_

He knew it had to be something. Luh-Loyd had that look on his face. The one where he was trying very hard not to laugh because he had set up a prank to fool his old man and didn't want to ruin it, not knowing that his barely contained glee had already done so.

There were other clues too. Like how every now and then one of the minions would snicker like they were in on the joke. Or a passing general or scientist would do a double-take before laughing their heads off and continuing on their way.

The fact that they seemed to be laughing at the kids and not at Garmadon was the only thing that saved them from being launched out of a volcano, Koko or no Koko. It was reminding him far too much of the time some idiot thought it'd be funny to stick a 'Kick-Me' sign on his back. He still had no idea who had done it and had fired several possible suspects. To this day, everyone in the volcano swore it was the 'pink jinx' that cursed their halls that did it, though no one would give him a straight answer about what that even was.

Ridiculous, this volcano was a malevolent evil lair, if there were any curses on it, they wouldn't involve the color _pink._ That is probably the least threatening color there is.

Anyway, back to Luh-Loyd's prank. He'd checked his back twice to see if there was another sign, but that wasn't the case this time.

Garmadon scrutinized his surroundings. Nothing _seemed_ out of place. Luh-Loyd and his minions had thought it would be hilarious to make baking soda volcanoes _inside_ the volcano and were trying to see who could make the coolest looking one for him and Koko to judge. They were almost done and were just waiting for Koko to get in there to set them off.

So far Luh-Loyd and the roboty minion were doing the best (in his unbiased opinion) with a sinister-looking skull-shaped volcano that the minion had somehow smuggled dry ice inside to give it an eerie fog to surround the base, and Luh-Loyd used green Christmas lights in the mouth and eye sockets to make it look extra creepy.

The second place one went to the only female minion of the group and the freckled one who was so clearly in love with her, as they'd made one that looked like her brother's head, which was sure to look hilarious when it blew.

From the way the spiky-haired minion was glaring at his sister, he was not at all amused and had to keep being elbowed by his partner (the biggest minion) to get back to work. If they were going for size to pick the winner, then those two would win hands down with how theirs towered over the others. It was sure to make a mess of the ceiling, and Garmadon couldn't wait to see the horrified faces of the cleaning staff.

As much fun as making things that go BOOM was, he couldn't let that distract him. Clearly from Luh-Loyd's expression and the way passersby laughed it was something obvious, but what is it?

Well, it was almost time to set the volcanoes off, so he better find it quick or it might blow up in his face. Literally.

"Luh-Loyd," he said in his most authoritative dad-voice, "did you mess with the amount of vinegar? Or the baking soda?"

Luh-Loyd let out a snort but shook his head.

Not that then, okay…

"Slime in the volcano?"

"Nope?" said Luh-Loyd.

"Fireworks?"

"Way too dangerous. No."

"Spoilsport. Uhhh, mentos and coke to make everything sticky."

"Nuh-uh, but I'll keep that in mind next time."

"Is it going to spew pink? You know the nerds here are weirdly paranoid about that stupid color."

"No, Dad," said Luh-Loyd in amusement. Seeing his minions look confused, he explained quickly, "Most people in the volcano think that color is unlucky for some reason. Dad got fed up and just banned the color."

"A ban I am extending to the rest of Ninjago once I take it over," said Garmadon proudly.

He then realized he was getting off track, and glared at Luh-Loyd suspiciously. "Wait, no trying to distract me. What did you do?"

"Me?" said Luh-Loyd, the picture of wide-eyed innocence. "I haven't done anything."

"Uh-huh," said Garmadon skeptically. "Don't believe it."

"It's true, _I _haven't done anything," Luh-Loyd repeated, putting extra emphasis on the 'I'.

All of his minions snickered.

Realizing what he was implying, Garmadon turned his scrutiny on the minions. So it was something _they_ did! What was it?

Some of Luh-Loyd's minions fidgeted under his gaze while others held firm. None of them told him anything, however.

He was still trying to glare them into submission when Koko finally entered the room and had to stop and stare.

"Lloyd," she said slowly, blinking like she couldn't understand what she was seeing. "Why are your friends dressed like Minions?"

Garmadon gave his lovely wife a confused look. "What are you talking about, Koks? They're already his minions."

All of the said minions were giggling uncontrollably now, and Luh-Loyd had to bury his face in his hands to muffle his laughter.

Koko gave him a look of fond exasperation. "I meant they're dressed like _literal_ Minions. Like in that movie you love."

Garmadon blinked and turned back to look at the minions again, and for the first time noticed they were all wearing yellow t-shirts with blue overalls and goggles that the Minions iconically wore.

"Huh," he said as that registered. "I hadn't noticed."

That seemed like the last straw, and the teenagers all fell over laughing.

Between giggles, Luh-Loyd managed to say, "Dad always calls them my minions. They, hehe, they wanted to dress the part."

Suddenly it all made sense.

Garmadon beamed at his son proudly. "Excellent!" he said rushing over to sweep his son up in a four-armed hug. "It's so wonderful you already have such loyal minions. You're going to do so much evil someday. It'll be great."

Said minions only laughed louder at that, and even Koko was giggling now.

It took a long time for them to calm down to have their volcano contest, but Garmadon couldn't be prouder.

Also, in his and Koko's totally unbiased opinion, Luh-Loyd totally won.

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**A/N I wrote this because I always thought it was funny that Garmadon called Lloyd's friends his minions in _My Dad is Bad but still Family!_ It would be hilarious for them to dress as actual Minions as a joke. Kay Hau and I had fun speculating that if it exists in-universe, then Garmadon would probably love the Despicable Me movies, but it still took him a while to catch onto the joke. He knew there was _A_ joke, just not what it was. Also, them making volcano models during a sleepover at the volcano was something Kay Hau and I discussed for those chapters of her fic, but was unfortunately cut due to not being able to fit it in. Well, now we have it here.**

**Again, thanks to Kay Hau for all the help with my own fics, and check out her fics as they're really good.**


	2. Lloyd Protection Squads Unite

**Lloyd Protection Squads Unite**

_Another Gift-Fic for Kay Hau. Takes place a little before the Golf Tournament in her My Dad is Bad but Still Family fic._

General #3 went on his patrol of Ninjago City, trying not to draw attention to himself. It helped that he'd ditched his crab uniform before going, but not by much.

He technically didn't _have_ to patrol the city, but it was something he and other various generals did when bored between invasion attempts or they just couldn't stand to be in the volcano anymore.

For General #3, it was the latter. With the golf tournament fast approaching, he knew it was only a matter of time until Garmadon failed _miserably_ to achieve victory and it would be his head on the chopping block (hopefully not literally) when that time came. Being the one to try to teach Garmadon how to actually play golf (and fail because he just wouldn't _listen_ to him), meant all blame would fall on him.

At least with his recently returned wife around he wouldn't be fired via the volcano.

Still, the outrage Lord Garmadon was sure to feel was almost certainly going to cause _something_ unpleasant to happen to him, so he'd best enjoy his time while it lasts.

As he was plotting how best to approach his impending termination (again, hopefully not literally) so he gets through it the most unscathed, he didn't see a girl approach until she was right in front of him.

Realizing there was someone planted on the sidewalk before him with no apparent desire to move, General #3 looked up to see a teenage girl standing in front of him, bag in one hand, her other on her hip, and her expression making it clear she meant business.

"Uh, can I help you?" asked General #3, trying to keep up the appearance of a mild-mannered civilian and not one of Lord Garmadon's top generals.

"You're one of Lord Garmadon's top generals, aren't you?" the girl asked bluntly.

General #3 froze and said something that caused a mother walking by with her child to gasp and run away with her hands over the child's ears.

Realizing he'd all but confirmed that, General #3 said, "Look, kid. I'm not on any invasion plan today. Just trying to take a walk in peace, so please don't call the cops, alright. Generals of an evil overlord need breaks too.

The girl gave a smile that reminded General #3 of Garmadon's sharks. "I'm not here to report you," she said. "I'm here to help you."

General #3 looked at her skeptically. She wasn't another Lord Garmadon fangirl looking to join their cause, was she?

The girl then held out the bag she was holding, revealing it to be a goodie bag full of sweets. "I'm Karen. Head of the LPF."

"LPF?" asked General #3, wondering if that was something he was supposed to have heard of.

"Lloyd Protection Fanclub," Karen clarified.

General #3 raised an eyebrow. Looks like it was a Garmadon fangirl, just not for the Garmadon he was expecting. Still, one word stood out to him. "Protection, huh?" he asked.

"Yes," said Karen, all business. "Me and the other club members work to ensure Lloyd's school experience is as pleasant as possible by deflecting hateful comments and deterring bullies from going after him, as well as keeping him safe from other fans who show less… restraint."

General #3's eyebrows rose higher and higher on his forehead the more she spoke. He was _impressed_. As head of the Lloyd Protection Squad among the generals, he was well aware that school was the one place they could not protect Lloyd (they weren't allowed on the premise and Lloyd _hated_ it when they tried to break the rules and do it anyway), and simultaneously was the place where Lloyd was the greatest target to harm, if only from bullying from his fellow peers. However, if someone on the inside was willing and able to do what they couldn't…

"So why approach me?" he asked, wanting to know what this girl's angle was.

Karen smirked. "I'm here to suggest we pool our resources," she said. "Work together to make sure Lloyd's as protected as possible. We'll help you look out for him in the school halls, and can give you the names of his most prominent bullies who can not be deterred through other means."

General #3 had to give a malicious grin at that offer. If there was one thing Lloyd was tight-lipped about, it was the names of those who made his life heck. The kid was just too good-hearted to seek retribution on the people who wronged him. If they knew who these people were, well, it would be easy to stage an unfortunate accident for them (though nothing _too_ serious, Lloyd would never forgive them if they did and he found out).

"Sounds good to me," said General #3. "But what's in it for you? I get you want to protect that kid, he needs it. But you wouldn't reach out to me if it was just that."

Karen's reply was immediate.

"Pictures," she said.

General #3 blinked in confusion. "Excuse me?"

"We want pictures," said Karen. "Pictures of Lloyd." Her face then shifted into a giddy smile. "He's _soooo_ cute," she practically squealed. "But he's always so tense at school. The volcano is his home, he must let his guard down there, so pictures of him in that setting have to be adorable."

General #3 stared at her for a long moment, before throwing back his head with a laugh. "You've got a deal, kid," he said, holding out his hand for her to shake. "Lloyd Protection Fanclub, welcome to the Lloyd Protection Squad. We'll send you the t-shirts later."

Karen beamed and shook his hand. "Happy to be of service."

That evening, General #3 got a complete list of every bully who had gone after Lloyd since the club's conception in his email. With a wicked grin, the general expressed his gratitude by sending an old digital collection of Lloyd's baby pictures he had (when he first started working for Garmadon, the man had him play photographer for months). He knew the fan club would appreciate them. To this day, Garmadon loved dressing his son in various costumes, and it was especially so when he was a baby.

The _deafening_ fangirl squealing, as a result, could be heard all the way from the volcano.

In other news, Chad the cheerleader's car was stolen a day later, and then returned filled to the brim on the inside with peanut butter, and painted hot pink with neon yellow polka-dots.

But I'm sure that's completely unrelated.

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**A/N Here's another gift fic for Kay Hau, and her _My Dad is Bad but Still Family_ fic. It features Karen and General #3, two background characters in the fic that take their Lloyd protecting job _very_ seriously, which is good because the boy needs it. Just before the golf tournament in chapter 32 Lloyd spots Karen talking to General #3 and dreads to think about how they met and possibly teamed up. Well, here's how it went down, and both sides are happier for it, and all bullies beware.**

**As this is a gift fic for Kay Hau, I obviously recommend that you check out her fics, because she writes some good ones.**


	3. Like Mother Like Son

**Like Mother, Like Son**

_This is a gift fic for Kay Hau, set in her fic **Venom in My Blood**. It's set before any of the events in her fic, but some things might not make sense unless you've read that fic._

Koko had always known the question was coming. With what a big deal so many people made out of it, it was inevitable. Still, she had been dreading it nonetheless.

"Mommy, why do I look scary?" her six-year-old son asked one morning before school, far too young to even care for appearances.

Koko's heart clenched at the question and immediately gathered the child into a tight hug. "You do _not_ look scary," she said firmly. And it was true, her son was about the least frightening thing she had ever seen, no matter what odd features he had.

"Okay," Lloyd mumbled, but Koko could tell he didn't believe her. "But why are my eyes and teeth like this?" he asked, rephrasing the initial question. "Your eyes and teeth don't look like mine. And no one else does either. No one except…"

He trailed off, and they both knew exactly where he got his glowing green eyes and sharp little fangs from.

"Well, sweetie, when little boys and girls are born, they get some of their looks from their mommy and daddy," Koko explained. "Since he's your father, you get some of your looks from him. It happens with everybody. Like how the neighbors' boy has red hair like his mommy and brown eyes like his daddy."

However, her attempts to make the features seem normal did little to comfort her son, and he burrowed his face into her shoulder as if trying to hide those features from her. "But I don't wanna look like him!" he whimpered. "I wanna look like you."

Koko's heart melted at his words, and she hugged him tightly. It was a sweet thing to say, but she knew how to read between the lines.

He wanted to look like her because she was 'normal'.

Still, while she couldn't (and wouldn't) change her son's features for the world, she could at least give him this. "You do look like me," Koko said honestly.

Lloyd lifted his head up to look at her dubiously.

In determination, Koko carried her son over to her vanity table and sat him on her lap in front of the mirror so they could both see their reflections in the glass.

"I admit, it's small things," Koko said as she studied both of their reflections. "But you do get some of your looks from me."

Lloyd's little head bobbed up and down as he glanced back and forth between his reflection and his mother's, not seeing what she meant.

"For one thing," Koko said, running her hand through her son's fluffy blond hair. "While not the same color, you have my hair. Our bangs always fall the same way, and if you were to grow it out, we could style it like mine too."

Lloyd looked up at both of their hair, and despite his mother's fingers carding through the strands, his bangs always fell in a way that was swept to the left, just like his mother's did. She gave him a slightly teasing grin, and gathered some of his short hair up in the back and held it to look a little like her loose chopstick bun, making the resemblance between them more pronounced. Worried he looked like a girl, Lloyd quickly shook his hair free, making his mother chuckle at his embarrassed expression.

"You also have my skin," said Koko, taking Lloyd's hand in hers to show they were the same color. "You know your father's skin is very dark, and even your Uncle Wu's skin isn't quite the same. You definitely get that from me."

Lloyd rubbed his hands together and took in the color with a small smile.

"Eyebrows too," Koko said, pointing at them for him to see in the mirror. "See, they're the same color, and…" she mimicked the curious look currently on Lloyd's face, her eyebrows pinching exactly the way his did. She then continued to mimic his expressions as his face shifted to surprise, then wonder, then a series of silly faces, each time her eyebrows copying his exactly.

"Also," Koko continued. "Your nose. You have the same nose as me, plain on your face." She leaned down to rub noses with her son and was rewarded with a small giggle out of him, but all too soon the smile fell away again when he glanced back at the mirror and caught a glimpse of his own eyes.

"You do look like me," Koko said, running her hand through his hair again to draw attention back to it and hopefully distract him. "You're my handsome little boy, and no matter what anyone else says, know that that's the truth." She then smiled at him fondly. "But no matter what you look like, I will always love you _so_ much," she concluded, pulling him back into one last tight hug.

Lloyd stared at the mirror again and forced himself to not look at his eyes and teeth, and instead focus on the features his mother had just pointed out to him. Maybe if he paid more attention to those, he could ignore the ones he got from his father.

And if he focused more on them, maybe he could get others to look at them too.

But one horrible day of school later with everyone only ever looking at his father's features, he knew without a doubt he would _never _be able to ignore them. Not when no one would ever let him do so.

Still, as he stared at his own reflection in the mirror as if willing his eyes to stop glowing and his fangs to shrink to normal size, a small thought occurred to him.

Maybe he should grow his hair longer. If nothing else, it could help him hide his eyes.

Besides, if it were longer, it would look more like his mother's.

More than anything, he wanted to look more like her.

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**A/N This is a gift fic based on Kay Hau's fic, _Venom in My Blood_. In that fic, Lloyd happens to look more like his father, with glowing eyes and sharp teeth, and yet that somehow makes him far more popular than in the movie where he looks normal. It's a really great fic that I highly recommend, as it's really funny, heartwarming, and cute. This fic came about during my and Kay Hau discussing that fic and what Koko might do when Lloyd was young and would ask why he looks like he does. Unfortunately, Koko doesn't have all the answers, but she gives him the best assurances she can.**

**A big thanks as ever to Kay Hau for beta reading my fics, and allowing me to beta read hers.**


	4. Smile! You're on Shark Cam!

**Smile! You're on Shark Cam! (Christmas Gift-Fic for Kay Hau)**

_(Set in Kay Hau's fic, **My Dad is Bad but Still Family.** It was mentioned in Chapter 37 and is set after the Golf Tournament)_

Lord Garmadon sat behind a table and grinned at the camera as a song played in the background that sounded like a mix of the Jaws theme and a news show intro. He was sitting behind a desk that looked like something found in a fishing supplies shop with a large red button in the middle. The area around him decorated to match that aesthetic, aside from a large screen set into the wall at his right that was currently set at just a title card.

At the signal from one of his minions, he said, "Sit down and shut up, minions and nerds, it's time for another awesome episode of the greatest show in the volcano and the universe, _Shark Cam!_ I'm your host and greatest villain of all time, Lord Garmadon. And this is my co-host."

Between him and the screen sat his son, who let out a resigned sigh, "Lloyd Garmadon, hi," he said with an awkward wave at the camera. "Sorry in advance to anyone who appears on this show."

"Why would you be sorry, La-loyd," Garmadon scoffed. "We're making them famous in the most entertaining way possible." He then grinned nastily at the camera. "Entertaining for us at least."

Lloyd just rolled his eyes.

"And now let's get started," said Garmadon. "But first, La-loyd, tell any newbies the rules of the show."

"As everyone in the volcano should know, the sharks in our waters are friendly and love attention. The great whites especially like belly rubs," said Lloyd like this was common knowledge everyone should know. "However, most people outside the volcano don't know that, and can really freak out at the sight of them."

"Which is so darn fun to see," said Garmadon gleefully. He then waved at a screen next to them. "And that is why we have _this!"_

The screen changed to show an overview of a dock outside the volcano with some of Garmadon's scientists attaching video cameras to three sharks swimming alongside it. One of the scientists looked up and waved at the camera, _"Hi, Mom!"_ he called.

The camera ignored him and zoomed in on the three sharks, who seemed to enjoy the attention as they swam in circles and made an odd, _"Nom, nom, nom,"_ sound.

Lloyd smiled at them like a proud pet parent. "Meet three of our best sharks, Garfield, Maude, and Donatello," he said. "Or, as they can also be called, Gar, Ma, and Don."

A laugh track sounded at that.

"Yeah, those sharks got great taste in names. These babies are gonna use those cameras on their heads to go up to swimmers off the coast of Ninjago and scare the dickens out of anyone they see while we judge those losers harshly for everything they do and stand for. Why?" Garmadon questioned. His face then took on an evil grin, "Because it's fun, of course."

Next to him, Lloyd quietly held up a sign that said _'Sorry!' _so that his father wouldn't see it.

Oblivious to this, Garmadon lifted a remote out from under the desk. "So let's look at our first victim of the day!"

They both turned to screen next to them as it shifted to the view from one of the sharks cameras, and in the corner was a bit of text that read _'GAR'_, indicating it was Garfield's camera that was rolling, though for now, all that could be seen was the blue of the ocean as he swam through it.

"Now our eyes in the sky have reported a couple of scuba divers over in the reefs away from the usual swimming areas," said Garmadon gleefully. "Let's give them an experience they won't soon forget."

Soon enough Garfield was making his way through a reef and the camera caught sight of two people in scuba gear admiring the coral set on a large rocky overhang.

"There they are," said Garmadon, grinning in anticipation.

With his targets in sight, Garfield began sneaking up on unsuspecting swimmers. Without going too close, he swam nearby and waited for them to see him.

The divers didn't even notice him.

Garfield came a bit closer, swimming around the area in ominous circles.

The two divers still didn't see him and seemed to be more focused on taking underwater selfies with the coral.

"Not the most observant pair, are they," said Garmadon rudely.

"Dad, no," Lloyd groaned.

Garfield swam even closer so that his shadow loomed over the divers menacingly.

They _still_ didn't notice him, and instead seemed enraptured by a little clownfish hiding in an anemone.

"_Really_ unobservant."

_"Dad!"_

The laugh track sounded in the background.

Garfield was practically on top of them now, scattering the fish around them into frightened swarms.

The divers just watched the fish swim frenziedly around, not even bothering to look for what was frightening them.

"Uh, okay, I take it back. These guys _are_ really unobservant. I mean what the heck?"

"Ha! Told ya, La-Loyd. They're practically asking for it at this point."

Seemingly fed up with being ignored, Garfield swam right up to one of the swimmers and nudged him with his snout.

The diver turned and _finally_ saw him. He let out a muffled shout through his diving mask that let out a stream of bubbles and back-peddled into his partner, drawing her attention and fright as well. The two frantically swam as fast as they could to cower under the rocky outcropping and hide.

Garmadon was laughing his head off at that reaction alongside the laugh track. "AHAHAHAHAHA!" he said, wiping a flaming tear from his eye. "That was perfect. Those two losers had no clue! And their faces, Pffft!"

Lloyd looked amused as well. "Yeah, not the best response to an unknown shark sighting, I'll tell you that. I mean really. Gar actually had to ask for their attention. Who could be _that_ unobservant."

"No kidding," said Garmadon, thumping his fist on the table.

Pulling himself together. Garmadon turned back to the camera with a nasty grin. "And now's the part where we get to judge them and their reactions. Now for being morons who are so blind they wouldn't see a threat if it danced naked in front of them, I award these two mooks, .00000006 points," he said, making sure to say all the zeros. He glanced at his son and asked, "La-loyd?"

Lloyd hummed thoughtfully. "They really were that unobservant, and you really shouldn't thrash around like that when you see a shark you don't know, as it might mistake you for food. But at least they took cover and didn't attempt to surface, which is dangerous to do quickly when scuba diving. I'll give 'em a 5. Could be better, but could have been worse."

With that, Garfield swam away, leaving the scared divers to cower.

"I'm now getting that another shark has spotted another pair of swimmers in a cove, possibly on a date," said Garmadon eagerly as the background track made and '_Aww'_ sound and hearts floated past the screen. "Let's go ruin it, shall we?"

"Dad, no," Lloyd groaned.

From the little text that said _'MA'_ at the bottom of the footage, it was now Maude at the camera. She was swimming close to the surface so that her camera peeked above the water.

In a partially hidden cove outside the city sat two teens sitting on top of floaties that seemed to be chatting with each other. The boy seemed comfortable to just sit in his floaty, but the girl would occasionally dive in or splash at the water.

At the sight of them, Lloyd perked up. "Hey, wait! That's Jay and Nya!" he said.

At that, Maude stopped approaching them, and Garmadon looked at Lloyd with a raised eyebrow.

Realizing his father probably hadn't memorized his friends' names (or even bothered to remember them at all), Lloyd explained, "You know, my friends from school. They've had sleepovers here twice now."

Garmadon's confusion cleared. "Ah yes, your loyal minions," he said.

"Yeah, my 'minions,'" Lloyd said with quotation marks. "It's not a date (yet). I forgot Nya wanted to practice her swimming today and took Jay with her to be her swimming buddy," he said, not wanting to tell his father Nya was actually out there to practice her water powers (and hoping she'd continue to have trouble with them so his father wouldn't see it on camera).

"Hmmm," said Garmadon scratching his chin. Then he shrugged. "Well, they're your minions. Can we spook 'em, or…"

_"NO!"_ Lloyd said emphatically. "No way, Dad. Jay's got anxiety problems. In the middle of the ocean is the absolute last place I want him to have a panic attack."

Garmadon blew a raspberry in disappointment. "Not exactly the best minion material there if he can't keep his head in a crisis," he said.

Lloyd rolled his eyes. It's not like he could tell him Jay was actually better in a crisis than most of Ninjago. Secret identities and all. "Jay's more the brainy type anyway and is good at building mechs. If anything he's a future science minion, not a general," he said to satisfy his father.

Garmadon grinned widely at that response and reached over to pull Lloyd into a hug. "Aw, look at you, already planning your future minion hierarchy. I'm so proud," he said, wiping another tear from his eye as applause sounded in the background. "Okay, they get 3 points. Can't go higher, since we didn't really see them react."

Lloyd just bit his tongue and tried not to show how much he hated to lie to his father.

Maude turned and swam away, leaving Nya and Jay none the wiser.

"And now we have a surfer who happened to come out a little too far," said Garmadon cheerfully, ready to move on to the next one.

The background track played some surfer music to go along with it.

With the little text now saying _'DON'_, Donatello cut through the waves as he approached the woman on her surfboard.

Unlike the last two attempts, this victim noticed Donatello right away, and with a panicked shout fell off her surfboard at the sight of him.

"Haha, wipeout!"

"Dad, no!"

"Dad, YES!"

Donatello ducked underwater to continue to view the surfer, who stared back and seemed to get more panicked by the moment.

"Uh, Dad, I think this might be bad."

"Aw, it's not that bad. She's just gotta get back on her board and she'll be fine."

The surfer seemed to swallow more than a little seawater and scrambled to kick back to the surface.

Only to bang her head hard against the surfboard and seem to knock herself out. Donatello stopped his approach and hovered nearby nervously.

At the sight of that, Lloyd's eyes widened, and he slammed his hand on the red button in the middle of the table.

Immediately, the words _'Dolphin Rescue!' _flashed across the screen along with a loud emergency siren.

A moment later, a dolphin wearing a medical vest appeared on the scene, ducked under the unconscious surfer to push her back to the surface and speedily began swimming her to the nearest lifeguard.

Garmadon groaned at the sight. "Aw, lame," he lamented.

Lloyd let out a shaky sigh of relief, and explained to the camera, "For those who don't know, Dolphin Rescue is when those caught on camera react in a way that is hazardous to their own health and can move them to safety."

"Psh," Garmadon scoffed. "And having to get a rescue is an automatic 0 points from both of us. Not sure why rescues are needed. Aside from my invasions, there haven't been any shark attacks in Ninjago for years. I keep 'em well fed, why would they wanna eat people. If some bozos are so dumb to not realize that, why bother saving them?"

"Dad, remember _Jaws_," Lloyd said with an air he'd explained this already several times. "If our sharks are considered dangerous they might be hunted down."

Garmadon growled hearing that. "Those losers better not."

"If they're not a danger, then they're not _in_ danger. Besides, you still need people to rule over once you conquer the city," said Lloyd, not sounding like he believed it would happen, but just trying to appease him. "Can't do that if they die."

"Good point," said Garmadon with a disappointed sigh. He then waved his hand and said, "On to the next one."

This time it was back to Maude as she approached a lone snorkeler.

"Thoughts, La-loyd?"

"Well, he's already got points off. You should always swim with a buddy."

Maude approached the snorkeler slowly, and he seemed to catch sight of her and froze.

"Oh, he saw her."

"Great! Now we get to the good stuff."

The snorkeler continued to tread water, and not react to Maude other than to stare at her tensely. Hoping for more of a reaction, Maude swam closer.

Then, in a quick jab, the snorkeler punched Maude in the eye, sending her reeling back in pain, before quickly swimming away.

"HE PUNCHED MAUDE!" Lloyd screeched, standing up from the desk and looking horrified.

"NEGATIVE BAZILLION POINTS!" Garmadon snarled, also standing up and seething in rage. He then turned to shout off camera. "NERDS! Find this guy! We're clobbering him when we next invade!"

"You can't invade for months, Dad," Lloyd said through gritted teeth, for once feeling disappointed by that fact. "You signed an agreement with the Mayor."

Garmadon growled again and seemed to think on it, before yelling, "Then find this guy and '_accidentally'_ fire something out of the volcano to land on his house! Or his car. He looks like the kind of jerk who cares way too much about his car."

Lloyd, for once, had no complaints about that. No one hurt his sharks.

Off-screen, a scientist scanned the snorkeler's picture from the footage. She quickly found his ID, and the car licensed in his name and it's location.

A second later, they all heard volcano go off.

Boy was that snorkeler in for a surprise when he got ashore.

Lloyd and Garmadon both needed to take several deep breaths and a commercial break to calm down before returning to their show.

"Let's find someone who _isn't_ a shark punching jerk," Garmadon said, still prickly about what they'd just seen. "I'm now hearing that we've got a bunch of girls out on a raft. Let's see how they handle it."

"Just don't pop the raft," said Lloyd, who'd used the commercial break to run down to the aquarium and give Maude a well-deserved belly-rub for her troubles.

Garfield approached the raft with his fin and camera above water so that it had a clear visual as it approached.

The first thing that was obvious about the raft was all the green. The raft was green, and all the girls riding in it were wearing green bathing suits or bikinis.

It only took a moment for Lloyd to recognize them. "Oh no," he said.

One of the girls in the raft happened to glance their way and do a double-take. _"Hey, is that a shark?"_ she asked her friends.

"Finally, some observant people," said Garmadon.

"Maybe a little too observant," said Lloyd.

The other girls all looked as well. _"Oh, look, it's got a camera!"_ squealed another, proving Lloyd's point.

As one, the girls all began waving at the camera eagerly, and one in the middle stood up and held a sign in the air that read, '_WE LOVE YOU, LLOYD!_'

Lloyd didn't know why the Lloyd Protection Fan Club was out on the water in a raft, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. At least this reaction was a pick me up from the last one.

His father definitely agreed. "10 points to them!" he said with a beaming smile and clapping Lloyd on the shoulder as the applause sounded again. "Anyone who appreciates my son is okay in my books." He then sniffled and looked misty-eyed with pride as he added, "He's already gaining more supporters for his future evil empire!"

"Uh, yeah, same, 10 points," said Lloyd feeling flustered, but resolving to let Karen know the sharks like belly-rubs next time he saw her.

Cue more applause.

"Okay, last victim of the day," said Garmadon, now in a far better mood. "Who will it be."

The camera shifted to Donatello approaching a swimmer treading water. But what was most interesting was that in the background was-

"Wait, is that the volcano?" asked Lloyd.

Garmadon scowled. "Is someone slacking off on the job?" he asked, not being one to tolerate laziness in his workers.

The swimmer dived down and Donatello approached her stealthily. As he drew nearer, it was easier to see the flash of red hair as she swam through the water.

"Wait, is that-" Lloyd started to ask.

The swimmer turned around and blinked at the shark before smiling and patting him on the head, revealing herself to be…

"TEN MILLION GAZILLION POINTS!" Garmadon bellowed, jumping to his feet and startling everyone, and a bell began ringing to signify a big winner.

"What? Why?" asked Lloyd in surprise.

"BECAUSE SHE'S KOKO!" Garmadon declared like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

And Lloyd couldn't disagree with that.

On-screen, Koko continued to pet the shark, but then her hand brushed against his camera and her eyes narrowed. With one final pat, she swam away.

Seeing that, Garmadon suddenly began to look nervous. Sitting back down, he said rapidly, "Well, folks, that's our show for tonight. Be sure to turn in next time to see-"

"Garm, why was your shark wearing- Wait, what's going on here?" Koko said as she stepped into the room still clad in her bathing suit.

The show immediately cut off, and the screen filled with static.

That was the last episode of _Shark Cam_ to be aired…

… At least, as far as Koko was aware.

* * *

**A/N MERRY CHRISTMAS, KAY HAU! Surprise! I wrote you a gift-fic for the holiday season, I really hope you like it. To all other readers, this is another of the many ideas Kay Hau and I talked about when discussing and beta reading each other's fics. At some point, we thought it would be a very Garmadon thing to do for him to do his own Shark Week show where he stuck cameras on his sharks' heads and had them scare swimmers. The idea just expanded from there, including Lloyd the reluctant co-host, dolphins to rescue unfortunate swimmers and Koko getting tons of points just because she's Koko. The ideas for all this were split pretty evenly down the middle between us, and it was just so fun to think about. She even mentioned it in Chapter 37 of _My Dad is Bad but Still Family, _even if she wasn't planning on expanding on it. Happy holidays, everyone.**

**Special thanks to Carrie2sky for Beta Reading this chapter. Since this was a surprise, I couldn't give it to Kay Hau to read like usual, so I asked her to beta for this one. I highly recommend her work as well, especially her and EMPFangirl02's collab fic, _Switched. _It's tons of fun and I implore you to check it out. Merry Christmas, Carrie2sky.**

**IMPORTANT NOTE! I and some other authors have been having difficulty getting PMs through email as usual. I'm sure that feature will be fixed soon, but if you leave a comment on this fic and want to see my reply, check your PM folder on this site instead of email.**


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